Rob Alston to retire as company CEO

WOBURN, Mass., March 16, 2021– Access, the world’s largest privately-held integrated information management services provider, today announced that Ken Davis, Ph.D., formerly Executive Vice President Products and Services at Gartner Inc., has joined the company as CEO. Ken succeeds Rob Alston, who will retire after 10 years as the company’s CEO. Rob will remain in an advisory role and as an Access board member in the near term.

Ken has spent the majority of his career at Gartner Inc., the world’s leading research and advisory company, most recently as EVP of Products and Services. In this capacity, Ken led product innovation, product management and service delivery across the entire $3.4 billion research business. Under his leadership, Gartner’s research business achieved double digit annual growth in both revenue and profit, driven by increasing client retention rates and new product innovation. Prior to Gartner, Ken was with McKinsey for 10 years advising software and tech-enabled companies.  He is a graduate of Middlebury College and received his Ph.D. from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

“I’m excited for the opportunity to lead Access in this next chapter of success by continuing to provide our customers with industry-leading service while executing on our vision to deliver client-focused innovation, enhanced technology solutions, and value-enhancing offerings,” said Ken Davis, Access CEO. “I am also thankful to Rob Alston for creating such a strong foundation and for his guidance along the way. I look forward to the great work ahead with our clients, communities, and team members.”

“We extend a heartfelt thank you to Rob for his outstanding leadership as CEO and for his many other contributions to Access through the years,” said Hoon Cho, GI Partners Managing Director and Access Board Member. “He will assist Ken to ensure a seamless leadership transition and we wish him much continued success.”

“We look forward to our continuing partnership with Rob and are pleased to welcome Ken to Access to lead the next phase of the company’s growth,” said EJ Whelan, Berkshire Partners Managing Director and Access Board Member.

“I’m humbled by what we’ve been able to accomplish at Access over the past 15 years including uninterrupted revenue, profitability and shareholder value growth,” said Rob Alston, Access’ former CEO. “Through both organic and acquisitive strategic efforts and thanks to the tireless efforts of our world-class team, the company has continued to grow its information management footprint across North America and Latin America. Ken is the right leader for our next phase of growth to continue our mission of advancing how the world manages information with the very best service.”

Prior to joining Access, Rob spent eight years building the records management business that he sold to Access in 2005. He spent more than 15 years at Access, including over 10 as CEO. During his tenure, Rob helped to grow and transform the company, driving significant year-over-year revenue gains, scaling the employee count from a few dozen team members to a few thousand, and completing over 160 acquisitions and expansions into five new countries.

About Access:
Access is the largest privately-held records and information management services provider worldwide, with operations across the United States, Canada, Central America and South America. Access provides transformative services, expertise and technologies to make organizations more efficient and more compliant. Access helps companies manage and activate their critical business information through offsite storage and information governance services, scanning and digital transformation solutions, document management software and secure destruction services. For 11 consecutive years, Access has been named to the Inc. 5000, the ranking of fastest-growing private companies in the U.S. For more information on Access, please visit AccessCorp.com.

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For more information, contact:
Company Contact:
Melissa Kolodziej
781-710-0763
[email protected]

Media Contact:
Lisa Hendrickson/LCH Communications for Access
516-767-8390
[email protected]

For Berkshire Partners:
Sarah Kulka
Berkshire Partners
[email protected]

For GI Partners:
Chris Tofalli
Chris Tofalli Public Relations LLC
914-834-4334
[email protected]

Gretchen Robinson
GI Partners
[email protected]